BUILDING RAMPS LIFTS HOMEBOUND RESIDENTS TO FREEDOM

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Katie Simpson. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.

Katie Simpson is building a better future… literally.

As one of seven children, she was taught to lend a hand when needed. By the time she became an adult, Katie put that knowledge into action regularly. Her volunteering career took off while her husband worked as a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force. While Katie had been working for the Pentagon, the couple was sent to live in Germany, and Katie decided to go on leave. It was then that she realized how good she was at helping some of the other families in the community. Realizing how much of a difference Katie could make, she got involved with several volunteer organizations.

Through her former church, Katie was introduced to the Texas Ramp Project, an organization that provides wheelchair ramps to low-income older adults and people with disabilities. Often isolated to their homes due to their disabilities, these people benefit from Katie and her team constructing a pathway to freedom. They measure each home’s entrance and exit, and order the lumber. A team of volunteers from TRP descends upon the home and builds a sturdy ramp that allows each resident to finally experience the outside. Thus far, her volunteer crew has built 35 wheelchair ramps.

While Katie is proud of her work with the Texas Ramp Project, it isn’t her only endeavor. She’s also a volunteer with Metroport Meals on Wheels, which provides home-delivered meals, senior center luncheons and other support services for seniors and those in need. Every Monday, Katie and her husband deliver meals to homebound individuals. They also frequently participate in fundraisers and deliveries of other items, like Christmas presents. Katie even leads three different textile ministries. She crochets prayer shawls and gifts them to cancer patients going through infusions at Texas Oncology. She sews blankets and hats for formerly unhoused veterans, and she has created and gifted 150 fidget quilts and blankets for special needs children and memory care individuals. Wherever she goes, Katie is looking for people to help.

In addition to all her volunteer work, Katie is adamant that her greatest role as a volunteer is not just getting the work done, but recruiting other people to start volunteering as well. While she may be helping others consistently, her mission to spread the word of volunteerism’s power is equally significant.

What inspired you to get started with this initiative?

It was a church we used to belong to, and I enjoy running things. I volunteered, and I thought it was really great. It’s literally freeing them. They cannot get out of their home without people carrying them. I did a couple of builds and realized they really weren’t very well organized. I’m very good at organizing, and so I suggested I take it over. Everyone said okay, so I just started recruiting volunteers. We left that church several years ago, but I said I could still do it.

Tell us about your volunteer role with the Texas Ramp Project.

I reach out to the client and find out exactly what they need. They send me pictures of the house, what they currently have, the steps, and I go out and take measurements. I design the ramp and develop the lumber list. Then I have Texas Ramp buy all the lumber and have it delivered. In the meantime, I send a note out to all my volunteers, setting a date. They show up around 8:30 on a Saturday morning and they don’t have to do anything but show up and work. It’s just really rewarding for them. I do the surveying of the site, ramp design and lumber ordering. I really enjoy doing it.

What are your long-term plans or goals for the organization?

Just continue to make a difference as long as I can. I’m still perfectly healthy and I stay in shape. I think I can keep doing this for quite a while. I just want to keep bringing more people in.

What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?

That I’m making a difference. I literally wake up and say that I hope I can help somebody today. What’s most rewarding is the smiles. Sometimes it’s something life-changing, like a ramp. Other times, it’s just helping somebody who’s just really having a hard time and maybe they just need you to visit them in hospice. It probably sounds corny, but making a difference, making people smile and just helping is the reward.

What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?

Good volunteer management. Bad volunteer management literally turns off people and they will never volunteer again. That’s just a shame, and you see too many of them go that way. I dabble around with different organizations to see if it’s something that I would recommend. I went to one recently, and there was nobody to greet the volunteers. I know enough to know that was just a bad experience, but other people probably think the whole endeavor is a waste of their time.

Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?

Because it’s better for them. Every time you get involved and you give something to somebody else, you will feel better about yourself. It gets you out of selfishly thinking all about yourself. No matter where you are, there’s somebody worse off than you are. Just look around to see where you can make a difference. There’s always something somebody can do. Some people can crochet hats for the unhoused, and some people can build ramps. It’s finding that thing that really makes you smile and realizing you just did this and you want to do it again.

Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?

Check with people you know, and see if they have any references on good places to volunteer. Don’t be afraid. Give yourself at least three shots at volunteering. Go someplace. Maybe it wasn’t good. Try three times at least. Force yourself to volunteer at least three times. Maybe it’s a build, maybe it’s something at church or maybe it’s delivering meals. Try at least three things. Most likely, you’re going to like at least one of those, and you’re going to learn something.

What do you want people to learn from your story?

Everybody can make a difference. That’s what it comes down to. Everybody can make a difference.

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Katie? Find local volunteer opportunities.